St. Louis Scientists Receive New Grants to Study Children’s Diseases

St. Louis, MO - How can a mother’s diet or use of medication affect her baby’s nervous system? What do the genetics of fruit flies tell us about diabetes in children?

These and other questions will be studied by eight teams of area researchers, thanks to new grants from the Children’s Discovery Institute—a leading center for pediatric research and innovation at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University. The grants provide $2.5 million in funding from the Institute, which has awarded almost $20 million to St. Louis scientists since its founding in 2006.

“These new grants continue a robust pediatric research effort here in St. Louis,” said Alan Schwartz, MD, PhD, executive director of the Children’s Discovery Institute. “The generous donations of St. Louis philanthropists allow our Institute to fund some of the most important research in the country on the genetic basis of serious childhood diseases.” The Children’s Discovery Institute encourages unique, productive collaborations among scientists at Washington University School of Medicine, the university’s Danforth campus, and St Louis Children’s Hospital, which would not be possible without Institute funding.

Eight studies of key diseases

In one study, Robert Heuckeroth, MD, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine will look at ways that a mother’s lack of nutrients like folic acid, or her use of some common medicines might cause genetic changes in her unborn baby. Such changes might lead to Hirschsprung disease, a birth defect that harms the baby’s intestines.

In another study, Thomas Baranski, MD, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine will team up with Michael Brent, PhD of the university’s Computer Science & Engineering Department to study how diets high in sugar can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, a disease that has risen dramatically among children. These scientists will use fruit flies—which share many traits of sugar metabolism with humans—to test the potential genetic effects of sugar. 

Other funded research will advance understanding of serious pediatric health problems:

Joseph Corbo, MD, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine will lead a team studying the genetic mechanisms of retinoblastoma, the most common malignant eye tumor in children.

Deborah Lenschow, MD, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine will investigate the genetic basis of a newborn baby’s response to viruses

Alexander Paciorkowski, MD of Washington University School of Medicine will establish a web-based registry of children with infantile spasms (ISS)—a serious form of epilepsy. Dr. Paciorkowski will use the registry to study genetic traits in children with ISS.

Michelle Smith, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine will use revolutionary new methods of microbiology, called metagenomics, to learn how disturbances in the bacteria of children’s digestive tracts can increase their risk of poor nutrition

Charles Canter, MD and Samuel Wickline, MD of Washington University School of Medicine will test a new, non-invasive technique to examine children at St. Louis Children’s Hospital who have received heart transplants.

Kathryn Miller, PhD, of Washington University’s Department of Biology, will use the grant for a college mentor program  allowing science students to assist with research related to children’s health.

Building on success

To date, awards from the Children’s Discovery Institute have resulted in significant progress in children’s health research. Awardees have used their funding to gather the scientific evidence they need to gain support for larger studies from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other national organizations.

For instance, Charles Canter, MD and Patrick Jay, MD, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine now have an NIH grant to study the effect of blood sugar (glucose) in children with heart failure based on preliminary work funded by the CDI. This project resulted in an additional NIH grant to Paul Hruz, MD, to study the impact of antiretroviral therapies on heart function.

Another team of Institute-funded investigators, Todd Druley, MD. PhD and Rob Mitra, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine, developed breakthrough techniques for DNA sequencing that ultimately led to a major grant to study the genetics of childhood leukemia from Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.

“The Children’s Discovery Institute supports the innovative studies that scientists must perform before their ideas can be tested on a larger scale,” noted Dr. Schwartz. “To develop a new treatment for a child’s disease, you first have to search for the causes of the disease. We fund that search.”

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The Children's Discovery Institute is a research partnership between St. Louis Children's Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine.  It aims to accelerate cures for childhood disease through four targeted centers: the McDonnell Pediatric Cancer Center; the Center for Musculoskeletal and Metabolic Disease; the Center for Pediatric Pulmonary Disease; and the Congenital Heart Disease Center. 

St. Louis Children's Hospital has provided specialized care for children for more than 130 years. The hospital is affiliated with Washington University School of Medicine, ranked the number two medical school in the country by US Nws &e World Report. In 2009, Parents magazine ranked St. Louis Children's Hospital among the 5 best children's hospitals in the country. In 2010, St. Louis Children’s Hospital received the Magnet re-designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the nation’s highest honor for nursing excellence. St. Louis Children's Hospital is a member of BJC HealthCare. For more information, visit ChildrensDiscovery.org.